Not A Fantasy
by Candygal
Summary: [Chlark]I will have a summary here for every recently updated Chapter.7: Chloe and Clark are lost in another demension of their minds, trying to get back to reality. But what happens when Chloe is left alone to fight the fears consuming her, killing her..
1. Disk Drama

Not a Fantasy Chapter 1 Disk Drama 

'Are you sure about this?' Clark asked Chloe as they snuck into a museum at 2am in the morning.

'Come on Clark, what have you to worry about? It is not like you can't outrun the security guards or something' Chloe smiled and quietly opened another door.

'That's not the point, and besides… how are you going to get out?' He asked her as he reluctantly followed her into another room.

'Here we are' She whispered and turned to face him. 'Don't worry about me' She told him and pointed to one of the displays. 'Over there, next to the meteor section'

'Chloe-' Clark tried to object, but she cut him off.

'Do you know what would happen if that got into the wrong hands Clark?' She asked him and he sighed.

He used x-ray vision to search for the disk in the technology section.

'Nothing' He told her.

'Well it has to be somewhere, try the other areas' She said.

Clark did and he used x-ray vision again and told her what he saw. 'Wires, dog poo, crystals … Chloe are you sure… never mind, I found it' He said.

'Good work, now you just have to get it and we can get out of here' She yawned.

'I can't' Clark told her.

'Clark, we need to get that disk… come on, we have been over this like twenty times already' Chloe told him, getting worried as the guard would be on his way over soon.

'I said can't, not won't… it's inside a meteor rock'

'What kind?' She asked, not getting it.

'The kind that makes me sick and powerless' Clark sighed and Chloe passed her laptop to him. 'What are you doing?'

'Getting the disk' She told him and crept over to the display.

Clark ran over to her and stopped her. 'The alarms will go off and then how are we supposed to get out?'

'We have to do something'

'Chloe, why is this disk so important anyway?'

'Do you want anyone finding out your secret Clark? That disk is filled with information on you and pictures taken of you using your abilities' She told him.

'Who did the disk belong to?'

'I don't know, some reporter from Metropolis, I overheard him talking about it on the phone' She sighed and looked at him. 'We have to get it, he is coming back to pick it up in a few hours' She said worriedly as she thought she had heard footsteps.

Clark gave the laptop back to her. 'Okay, you win' He sighed and punched the glass. Chloe grabbed the rock and took off her sweater. She wrapped it around the rock so Clark was not as infected by it.

The alarms were going crazy, two nearby security guards jumped awake and one alerted the other on duty near the location. They called the police and the other turned around the corner to see what was going on. The torches beam aimed at the display in the meteor section, it was broken and the rock had been stolen, but there was no one in sight…

'Clark! What happened?' Martha yelled as she saw Clark coming inside with blood dripping from his face and he was carrying Chloe in his arms.

Clark placed Chloe on the lounge and he collapsed to the floor…unconscious.

'How is he?' Jonathan whispered to Martha the next morning.

Chloe lay there with her eyes closed; listening, as she had no idea what was going on but they seemed obvious they were talking about Clark.

'He's okay, sleeping like a baby' Martha whispered back.

'Did he say what happened?' Jonathan asked.

'I didn't catch all of it, but something about a museum that they were trying to get some sort of disk. It was in a meteor rock with kryptonite. When the alarms went off, Clark grabbed Chloe and attempted to run for it, but the kryptonite was making it difficult, so he jumped through a window, cutting himself and knocking Chloe out. As it seems, he was not going to leave her or the rock, so he drove her here while resisting the pain of the kryptonite' Martha whispered.

Chloe sat up in surprise and they ran over to see if she was okay.

'Where's Clark?' She asked and Martha pointed to the stairs.

She got up and ran upstairs to his room.

Clark was asleep in his bed, completely healed but looking very tired.

'Oh Clark, I am so sorry' She whispered and sat on the bed. She moved the hair from his face and just watched him sleep, thinking about what had happened several hours ago, but it all seemed too fuzzy to her.

'He just needs some rest' Martha whispered from the doorway.

Chloe got up instantly and looked at the floor. 'Yeah, I will come back later to see how he is going okay?' She said and before Martha could reply, she was out the door and down the stairs. 'Bye' She said to a confused Jonathan and she left.

'What was that all about?' Jonathan asked Martha as she came downstairs.

'I don't know' She admitted.

Chloe sat at her desk and checked on her computer for any report on the incident, that last thing she needed was someone to link them to what happened.

'Mystery Break In At Metropolis Museum' She read the tittle aloud but quietly and examined the picture of the broken display case and window. She read the article and gave a sigh of relief.

'Woah, what happened there?' Lois asked from behind her, making her jump.

'Lois! Hey, um nothing much' She said and closed the page.

'Are you okay Chloe?' Lois asked her cousin and sat on an empty chair next to her.

'Sure, why do you ask that?'

'It's not everyday that I give you a fright when you're expecting me' Lois told her.

'What?' Chloe asked, unsure if she had asked Lois to come by or not, but she certainly did not remember.

'Yesterday? You asked me to come by and pick up those files… don't you remember?' Lois asked her; a little confused that Chloe would forget that.

'Oh! Yeah um, they're over there' She said and pointed to the other end of her desk. 'Sorry, I have been…busy' She explained quickly.

'Sure, and it wouldn't have anything to do with a particular tall, farm boy now would it?' Lois smiled knowledgably at her.

'Why do say that?' She said defensively.

'Just that you have been spending a lot of time with him lately, I mean more than usual'

'It's nothing' Chloe shrugged and turned back to her computer, hoping Lois would drop it.

'If you say so' Lois said disbelievingly. 'I'll catch up with you later, bye Chloe' Lois waved and left.

Chloe watched her leave with relief and then brought the article up again to check it over once more, just to be sure nothing was too leading.

Clark sat up suddenly and looked around. He was in his own bed, and it was almost sunset.

'Clark, you're finally awake' Martha said. 'And don't worry, Chloe is fine and she said she will stop by again to see how you are going… which I assume would be any moment now'

'Where is the disk?' He asked, remembering the whole point to nearly getting Chloe and himself killed.

'Still in the meteor rock I assume, Chloe said she will worry about it when she comes back' Martha assured him. 'You should have a shower and come down for dinner' Martha smiled and left the room.

Clark looked at his torn and bloody clothes, she was right… he really did need to change. Clark got out of bed and headed to the shower, knowing Martha will be back to change the sheets on his bed.

'Knock knock' Chloe said as she came inside.

'Oh hey Chloe' Martha said and Jonathan smiled.

'Where is-' Chloe as asking as there was a thud from upstairs and Clark came running downstairs in only a towel.

'Mum, what-' He saw Chloe standing there. 'Ah, never mind I'll do it' He said and rushed back upstairs.

Martha tried not to laugh at the look on Chloe's face as she went upstairs to make sure Clark was okay.

Jonathan smiled as well when Chloe started blushing.

'Well, I can see that he is okay' She said quietly and sat at the table, still in a little shock and amusement.

After a couple of minutes, Martha came back downstairs, followed by a fully clothed and embarrassed Clark.

'Um, hi Chloe' He said awkwardly and sat next to her.

She nodded and hid her smile.

'Well I must be off' Jonathan said and gave Martha a kiss goodbye.

'You're not staying for dinner?' Martha asked him.

'I can't, but I'll make up for it' Jonathan told her and left in a hurry, grabbing his jacket on the way out.

'What's going on?' Clark asked.

'Oh, your father has a meeting with some people in Metropolis about farming expenses, he should be back by tomorrow some time' She smiled and put plates down for Clark and Chloe.

'Oh, I didn't know you were having dinner now, I could come back later' Chloe said apologetically.

'No it's alright Chloe' Martha smiled at the nervous look on Clark's face.

'Okay…if you're sure' Chloe sighed and picked up a fork.

They ate quietly, Martha asking a question here and there, but Clark seemed to be quite silent the whole time, still feeling a little embarrassed.

'Why are you so quiet Clark?' Chloe asked him when Martha picked up their empty plates. 'I'm the one who should be speechless'

'Then why aren't you?' He asked her.

'I don't know, I guess ever since I knew your secret, nothing surprises me anymore' She shrugged.

Clark nodded. 'So ah, are we going to sort out this disk or not?'

'Oh, yeah, sure… I forgot all about that' Chloe admitted and they got up from their seats.

'That's what you came here for, right?' Clark asked.

'I came to see if you were okay, but yeah, we need to get rid of the disk' She said.

'We won't be long' Clark told Martha.

'Take your time' She replied with a smile as Clark lead Chloe out the door and towards to barn.

Clark pointed to a red toolbox on a bench. 'Dad told me he put it in there' He told her and she went over to it, getting the meteor rock out of the toolbox.

'How am I supposed to break this thing without Clark Kent's super strength?' She asked and picked up a hammer. 'Maybe this will do' She hit the rock hard, but it did not even crack. 'Well' Chloe sighed and put the hammer down. 'I can see why the guys chose this location to hide and protect the disk… of all places'

Clark watched at a distance while Chloe made several attempts at breaking the rock, one including throwing it, but nothing seemed to be working.

'Here' Clark went over and quickly crushed the Kryptonite to pieces, but was going to move away when the effect caused him to collapse.

Chloe dragged him (with struggle) away from the kryptonite as it was shattered all over that area.

'Are you okay?' She asked him and he nodded, sitting up.

'Good, because we have to destroy that disk' She told him and he looked at the disk carefully. His heat vision melted the disk until there was nothing of it left.

'I'll sweep this up' Chloe said and got a broom for the Kryptonite that was still in shattered pieces.

Clark lay on his back in relief.


	2. Out of Ordinary

Chapter 2 Out of Ordinary

'Greetings Jonathan, so glad you could make it' the man said and shook his hand.

'Me too' Jonathan smiled. 'And you are…?'

'Gary, but names are not important. Let's get straight down to business okay?'

'Sure' Jonathan said and followed him into the huge building. They went up a few floors in an elevator, then Gary lead him into a room with a large table surrounded by chairs. Three other men came over and one of them pointed a gun at Jonathan.

'What is going on here? I thought we were to have a meeting' Jonathan said loudly as Gary got out a gun as well and held it to Jonathan's head.

'Oh we're having a meeting alright here farmy, but not about what you had assumed' Gary smiled.

'What do you want from me?' Jonathan demanded.

'Oh, nothing much… just one million dollars and your son Clark can be the delivery boy'

'What do you want with Clark?'

'That is for us to know. So, do we have an agreement?'

'No, I would never agree to something like that!' Jonathan nearly yelled.

'Oh? Well that's such a shame, considering that we know where you and your wife Martha live, and where your son Clark tends to hang out…it would be just tragic if something was to happen to them' Gary smiled.

'You keep them out of this'

'Then get Clark to give us our money by sunset…Saturday'

'Saturday? That's 5 days away'

'Well since this day is already done, it's more like 4 days… good evening to you Mr Kent'

Jonathan went to leave, but Gary spoke up.

'Oh, and one more thing…if you tell anyone about this, even Clark… then will kill whoever knows'

'What if they find out? And how and I supposed to get Clark to deliver the money if he doesn't know?'

'Whoever knows other than you dies, we do not care how they know. As for Clark, he should be a good boy and do as he is told…no questions asked' Gary smiled and waved. 'Bye'

Jonathan left quickly and decided to go straight home and not spend the night at a hotel. The last thing he needed at a time like this was to waste money on hotel expenses.

* * *

'Are you sure?' Martha asked Chloe. 'It is late and we have a spare bed if you want to stay here until morning'

'I don't know' Chloe said, but knew Martha was right, it was getting late and she was tired, not the best mood to be driving home in. 'Yeah I guess so, if that is okay with Clark' She said and looked at him.

'What? Oh yeah, sure' He said sleepishly.

'Okay, that's that settled then' Martha said and lead Chloe upstairs. 'I have pyjamas you can borrow if you like' She said.

Clark sighed and followed them up the stairs. He went to his room and collapsed onto his bed. It felt weird to be as tired as he was, but it must be from the Kryptonite, he sure has had a large share of it today, but at least everyone was okay now.

'What else could go wrong?' He asked himself.

'I hope you are not referring to me' Chloe said from the doorway, afraid that he was.

'No, just thinking about all that has happened today, I am glad it is all over' He yawned.

'Yeah…me too. Well, goodnight'

'Goodnight Chloe' He said and she headed to the spare room.

Clark closed his eyes and sleep consumed him.

He had only got a few hours sleep when his hearing awoke him. Sometimes he wished he did not have the ability to hear everything. He listened closely to find out what it was that had awoken him. He heard the wind outside, a mouse eating crumbs in the kitchen and the sound of someone tossing around in their bed.

'Chloe' He whispered and got up. He pushed the door to the spare room opened slightly and he saw he was right. Chloe was on her side, then back, then other side.

'No, leave me alone' She was muttering panickly in her sleep.

Clark went over to see if she was alright. 'Chloe?' He whispered and sat on the side of the bed.

'No…Clark, don't go' She was muttering and then she suddenly sat up, hitting her head against Clark's, which to his surprise…hurt, a lot.

'Ouch!' They both gasped and Chloe looked at him in surprise.

'Clark? What…what are you doing here?' She whispered.

'You were having a bad dream' He said and rubbed his head.

'Are you okay?' She asked, noticing this.

'You have asked me that a lot recently' He replied, not answering her question though. 'Well I'm going back to sleep' He said and got up.

'Okay' She said and lay back down.

'Goodnight Chloe' He said again and left the room.

Why did that hurt? He asked himself as he got back into bed. He remembered feeling tired after the ordeal with the disk.

As he was just about asleep again, he heard a car outside and a few minutes later the front door opened. Clark got up again and went to see who it was.

'Dad?' He asked in surprise as he saw Jonathan hanging his coat up.

'Go to bed son' Jonathan told him and headed up the stairs, only to have Clark follow him.

'But why are you home? Mum said you won't be back until morning'

Jonathan did not reply, but went to the bathroom and slam the door behind him, waking Martha and Chloe up.

'What is going on?' Martha asked as she and Chloe came over to Clark.

'Dad is home early, but he doesn't seem to be in a good mood' Clark told them.

'Maybe it was a tough meeting or something' Chloe said, trying to think of something reasonably okay.

'Maybe' Clark said, unconvinced.

'Well we can sort this out later, go back to bed' Martha told them and they did.

She looked back at the bathroom door, hoping Jonathan was okay. She sighed and went back to bed, as there was not much she could do for Jonathan right now.

* * *

Chloe awoke to a dimly lit room, the sun was going to rise very soon She had had a busy night before and was glad it was finally morning. She got up and changed into what she was wearing the day before, as she did not have any spare clothing with her. She then need to make the bed, so she did. Chloe decided to go outside and watch the sunrise, it was not something she saw much of, especially in the city.

She walked down the hallway and as she came to Clark's room he noticed his door was open. She smiled at the sight of him sleeping so peacefully.

Who would think that someone who spend nearly everyday saving the world and had all these cool powers would look so innocent when he was asleep.

Clark frowned a little, whispering 'Lana'

Chloe's smile disappeared and she turned to walk away when she noticed that he was waking up.

'Hey' He yawned when he saw her. He looked confused as to why she was standing there.

'Hey…I was just…ah' She tried to think of an excuse, but Clark was to sleepy to be bothered.

'What time is it?' He asked as he noticed that the clock on his bedside table was smashed, he had broken it last week when it woke him up.

'I don't know' She said, glad for a change of topic. 'But the sun is about to rise' She told him.

Clark nodded and got up. 'Let's go watch it' He said and headed outside.

'It's beautiful' Chloe said in amazement as the sky lit up with all sorts of different colours.

'Yeah' He said, looking at her, but turning back to the sky as she turned to face him.

'I never new it looked this nice out here in the country' She said. 'Well, I actually haven't seen the sunrise for awhile now' Chloe added and turned back to the sky.

Clark nodded, not sure of what to say. He then heard his parent's door opening and the bathroom door slam again.

'What is it?' Chloe asked him, noticing the disturbed expression on his face.

'I hope my dad is okay'

'I am sure he is Clark, he is a tough guy, there is not much he cannot handle' Chloe said convincingly.

'Yeah, you are right, I am just being paranoid' Clark sighed.

'It is not paranoid to be worried Clark' Chloe almost laughed, but turned back to the sky. 'And it is over, I think it is such a shame how some things in life can be so wonderful, yet only last a short period of time, it kind of reminds us that not everything lasts forever and we should make the most of this while we can' Chloe said absentminded.

'Yeah' Clark agreed and looked at her again. 'Some things are more special then we may ever realise'

'Until it is gone' She added but Jonathan coming outside interrupted them.

'Hey dad' Clark said.

Jonathan noticed Chloe. 'What are you doing here?'

Chloe was a little taken-aback. 'It was late, so I stayed the night'

Jonathan looked at Clark and then back to her. 'Where did you sleep?'

'In the spare room' Clark answered for her.

Jonathan nodded and continued heading to his trunk.

'Dad, are you alright? You don't seem like yourself'

'I'm fine' Jonathan said. 'Just have some things to sort out, noting to worry about' He added and got into his trunk.

'What was that all about?' Chloe asked as he drove off fast.

Clark shrugged and turned back to the house. 'Let's go have something to eat, I'll worry about dad later' He said and they went back inside to find Martha making breakfast.

'I am so glad I am not needed at the Daily Planet today or I would be in trouble' Chloe said as she got into her car, noticing it was wet.

'Looks like it rained last night' Clark said as she started the engine and tried to get her car out of the mud, but no luck.

'Well instead of admiring the mud getting all over my car, you could give me a little help' Chloe said to him.

'Oh, right' Clark smiled and went to the back of her car. He put his hands under the rear and lifted… but nothing happened.

'Come on, as much as I love spending time with you Clark, I do not have all day'

'It won't move' He told her as he tried again with no luck.

'Don't lie to me' She said and got out. 'Oh, you were serious' She said as she watched him have a third attempt. 'What happened to you powers?'

'I don't know' He said worriedly. 'Get in, I'll push it'

'You sure?' She asked, but got back into the car and restarted the engine.

'It can't be that hard' He said and pushed with all his might, making the car move just enough to get it out of the mud, but as he stood upright, he was almost completely covered in mud.

Chloe almost laughed at the sight of him, but remembered how serious the situation was.

'Did you touch anything or something that would cause this to happen? And what about you other powers?'

'The only thing that happened was the kryptonite, but it has never done this to me before and I have had some pretty close contacts with it before' He said and tried x-ray vision…nothing, so he tried heat vision, but that did not work either. He sped around the house and back.

'So you still have your speed, but is that all?' Chloe asked worriedly.

'My super hearing seems to be working, but everything else is gone'

'Your heat vision and strength was working when we destroyed the disk, did anything happen after that?' Chloe asked, thinking back.

'Nothing significant …what would make my powers just start to vanish like that?'

'I honestly do not know Clark…I may know your secret but that does not mean I have all the answers, but do you think your speed and hearing will go too and what about your ability to heal quickly?'

'I'm not sure, but I am going to find out what is going on' He said and sped off.

'Okay, thankyou for telling me what exactly you are going to do about it' Chloe sighed, getting into her car and driving off.


	3. Troubles Beginning

Chapter 3 Troubles beginning

Wednesday 

'Any luck?' Chloe asked Clark as he came over to her desk at the Dailey planet.

He shook his head and sat next to her. 'My speed is gone' He whispered.

'Well I have done some research on that meteor rock and I think I have a solution as to why this is happening' Chloe said, but was interrupted by Lois coming over with the files she had picked up the day before.

'Smallville, what a surprise' She said sarcastically to Clark when she saw him towards the computer screen, standing right next to Chloe.

'Hi Lois' He sighed in response.

'And here are the files I borrowed from you' She said, dropping the folders back on Chloe's desk.

'Thankyou' Chloe smiled and Lois waved goodbye.

'What did she need them for?' Clark asked curiously.

'She is desperately looking for something to throw at Lex's face' Chloe sighed. 'I guess she never heard of a cream pie…but she has been at it all month, not much luck…so anyway, about the rock, it was not just green kryptonite… it contained some other substances mixed within and I can't seem to find out what they are exactly, for some reason I can't get access' She said, frowning at the computer screen like it was all it's fault.

'At least we know what caused it. I went to see Jor-El as he might have had something to do with it… but he didn't seem to. Um… and do you think it's permanent?'

'I doubt it…you should start getting your powers back any moment' She said, not completely certain.

'Okay, thanks Chloe' He smiled and left.

'No problem Clark' She sighed, watching him leave.

* * *

'Hey dad, I need to talk to you' Clark said as he came inside.

'What is it?' Jonathan asked as Martha listened from the sink.

'I have been loosing my powers, one by one' He explained and told them all he knew so far.

'And has any of them been coming back yet?' Martha asked in concern, while Jonathan looked very worried, more than he would have usually looked upon hearing this kind of news.

'Not yet, but I haven't lost them all yet… dad, are you okay?'

'I have to go see someone, I'll be back later' He said and grabbed his coat.

'But you just got home a few minutes ago' Martha said.

'I know, sorry' He said and gave her kiss goodbye.

'What has gotten into him?' Martha asked Clark as they heard his trunk leaving.

'He's been acting this way every since he got back early from Metropolis, do you think something happened there?' Clark asked, starting to figure it out.

'But don't you think he would have told us about it by now?'

'Unless he doesn't want us to know… or he can't tell us' Clark said, coming into realisation and made an attempt to speed after Jonathan, but then remembered as he ran straight into the door, that he didn't have his power of speed back yet, if he was ever going to get it back that is, but he has faith in Chloe, so he was sure it would come back eventually.

'He will be back' Martha finally said, rubbing Clark's back. 'Just wait for him'

* * *

Jonathan did return later that day, but Clark was visiting Chloe and by the time he came home, with Chloe, Jonathan had gone to bed early.

'Staying for dinner again Chloe?' Martha asked when Chloe and Clark came inside.

'I guess so' Chloe smiled.

'Can she stay over again mum? We're going over her research on the meteor rock and with how much she's got, it could take all night' Clark told her.

'Sure, not a problem' Martha replied and started to get dinner ready.

After dinner, which Jonathan missed, Chloe and Clark went to the barn to go over the research Chloe had.

'Did you have to get so much?' Clark sighed as they had a huge pile of papers and files.

'You said you wanted everything on it, so I got everything' Chloe said firmly and placed the stuff down in front of them. 'Now let's get to work' She told him and he nodded.

They worked for hours, going over all the seemingly endless information.

'Make it end' Clark complained and leaned back on his couch.

'We are only halfway Clark' Chloe sighed, but agreed that hours of reading about a rock was a little too much.

'Come on Chloe' Clark said and looked at his watch. 'It is nearly 3am'

'Wow, time sure does fly' She yawned, feeling tired now what she knew what time it was. 'Okay, but we continue later okay?'

'Thankyou' Clark said cheerfully and instantly got up.

They headed back to the house, careful not to wake Martha or Jonathan as they crept to Clark's room.

'There, this should do' He said and handed her a large shirt for her to sleep in.

'Thanks' She whispered and headed out the room.

'Goodnight Chloe' He said and collapsed onto his bed.

Chloe changed into Clark's shirt, which was long enough to cover her hips. She got into bed and fell asleep to Clark's scent.

* * *

Thursday

'Clark, are you daydreaming again?' Chloe asked him as they went over the papers again the following morning.

'No' He lied.

'Can you please focus a little more?' She sighed, seeing right through hie lie.

'I just don't see the point to… do you hear that?' He asked as he heard a sound, but he wasn't sure what it was.

'Ah hello? I don't have super hearing remember?' Chloe said, all the reading making her slightly frustrated. 'What does it sound like?'

'A rumble sort of shaking sound, but more like an engine…and-' Clark stopped when he heard a man's voice crying for help. 'A man is stuck under a tractor' He said and sped from the barn.

It was a nearby farm, Clark didn't know the man and his wife well, but they had met on a few occasions. The man was out in the paddock, the tractor lying on top of him, gas leaking all over. He was knocked out now, and the house was at distant. Clark lifted the tractor off him and picked him up, taking him out of harms way. Seconds later, the tractor caught flames and exploded, causing Clark to shield the man from the blast. Once he was sure it was safe, he left as the man was waking up.

He got back to the barn and saw Chloe picking up papers that were scattered everywhere.

'Next time, would you please go outside before you send everything flying?' She almost snapped at him. 'And I see your super-speed is back'

Clark then realised it was, he was in such a hurry that he had forgotten that he had supossingly lost his powers. 'My strength too' He smiled and remembered how he also shielded the man from the blast. 'You were right, they are coming back'

'Well of course I was right' She said like it was obvious. 'Now you can help me pick these up' She said and pointed to the floor that was covered in their research papers.

Clark smiled and super-speedingly picked up every paper and handed the pile to Chloe.

'Okay Mr-Show-Off' She raised her eyebrow. 'What do you suppose we do, it will take forever to put all these in order again'

'Such a shame' Clark smirked sarcastically. 'Well my powers are coming back, so I really don't see the point in going over this anymore'

'You didn't see the point before we even started, but I know what you mean' She sighed and gave in, putting the papers down. 'You smell like gas, from the tractor I'm guessing' She noticed.

'Yeah, I'm going to go and get changed' He said and headed to the house.

'What do I do?' She asked, not sure if she should wait or leave.

'I have to have a shower and wash all this off, will you be here when I come back?' He asked her from the ground.

'Sure, I'll wait' She said, not being able to resist.

'Thanks' Clark smiled and sped to the house.

'No problem Clark' She said once again and watched the spot where he was just standing. She forced herself to let go of what she was feeling. She turned her attention to Clark's telescope. 'It's hard to believe you actually are from another world Clark, but your mind seems to always be in one' She sighed and looked into the telescope.

'Hey Clark…is that gasoline I smell?' Martha asked as Clark came inside.

'Ah yeah, had to rescue a neighbour, I'm going to have a shower' He said quickly.

'Has Chloe gone home?'

'No, she's waiting for me at the loft'

'Well I'd hate for you to keep her waiting for long' Martha said, letting him know he can go have his shower.

He nodded and sped upstairs.

'And you have your powers back' She smiled and returned to washing the dishes.

Chloe moved away from the telescope and heard footsteps on the stairs.

'Hey Clark, that was rather fast, even for you' She said happily and turned around, but no one was there. 'Okay Clark, quite joking around' She laughed, but then a cloth covered her mouth and someone's hand held it firmly in place until she blacked out.

* * *

Clark came back downstairs in clean clothes and slightly wet hair. He heard Chloe's car leaving.

'I guess I took too long' He sighed in disappointment.

Martha noticed how upset he seemed. 'Maybe she had someplace to be' He tried to cheer him up.

'She said she didn't, and promised to wait for me'

'I am sure she has a very good reason Clark'

'Yeah' Clark said, not entirely sure. He went back to the loft and watched her car becoming a little red dot in the distance. He turned around as it had gone from view and noticed the pile of papers were still there, along with Chloe's purse.

'That's weird' He said and picked it up. 'Why would Chloe leave this here?' He then saw a cloth lying on the ground near his telescope. He picked it up and noticed the scent. Realisation hit Clark; he dropped the cloth and sped after Chloe's car.

* * *

He followed it right to a warehouse and kicked down the steel, locked door.

'Chloe!' He called out but go no reply.

He searched some rooms, used his super hearing, but his x-ray vision was still blanked out.

'Hey kiddo' A man said and pointed a gun at Clark. 'I want my disk'

'Where is Chloe?' He demanded, not having much concern for the gun.

'When I get my disk, you can have your little girlfriend back' He said angrily.

'I don't have it' Clark told him honestly as he had destroyed the disk already.

'Don't lie to me farmy… give me my disk' He yelled and Clark didn't reply, unsure of what to tell him.

'Get the girl' He told another and the guy nodded. The darker guy dragged unconscious and tied up Chloe into the room. Clark saw her eyebrow was bleeding, most likely from being hit. He grew angrier at the sight of her like that.

'Let her go!' He yelled, but the man just smiled.

'When I get my disk' he smirked and nodded to the darker guy, whom held a gun to Chloe's head. 'Or she dies'

'It's gone, and there is no way to get it back, so kill me if you have to… but please leave her out of this'

'Don't talk like that kiddo, I know you have it!' He yelled, but the truth was clear in Clark's eyes. 'Alright farmy, you think you're so good, you are going to regret your decision' He said and fired the gun three times, aiming for Clark's chest.

He super-sped past them and grabbed the gun from the man's hand, throwing it far from sight. He then did the same to the other gun, but before he could grab Chloe, he collapsed to the floor and weakly looked up at the guy holding Chloe, he was wearing a thousand-dollar watch made from green kryptonite. Clark gasped and tried to get up, but he couldn't.

'What the…? How did you move so fast?' The guy snapped and saw Clark on the ground. 'Come on, get up farmy… you think we are that stupid? You weak trick won't work on us' He said and kicked Clark, rolling him over slightly and making him gasp out in pain. 'So you are not faking it after all…but how did this happen?'

The dark guy shrugged and looked at Chloe, whom was waking up.

'Tie them both up somewhere, separately and keep a close eye on him' the guy said, pointing to Clark.

The dark guy nodded and tied Chloe to a chair and grabbed Clark. The guy tied him to a pole a little bit away from Chloe and stood next to him to make sure he didn't go anywhere.

'I'm going to Metropolis, I have to get the place ready for the deal I made with Kent' the guy said and left the dark guy there to guard Clark until he got back.

'Clark?' Chloe asked as she opened her eyes and saw Clark all tied up and weak looking.

He didn't reply, but she noticed the dark guy's watch and it didn't take long for her to figure it out.

'What have you done to him?' She said angrily to the guy.

'I ain't done nothing, he got himself in his own mess lady' the guy replied and grabbed Clark's hair to pull his head back so he could smirk at him.

'Leave him alone!' Chloe said.

'Or else what?' the guy smiled and walked over to her. Chloe hoped he would be at enough distance from Clark that the kryptonite wouldn't have an effect on him, but it wasn't enough, maybe another metre, but the guy would have to walk past her and she didn't know how to get him to do that as he had no reason to go past her at all.

'Or else you'll be sorry' Chloe said, bluffing it, but she didn't know what other option she had.

'Chloe…don't' Clark gasped and tried to get the strength to break free, but the kryptonite was still too close.

'You two are so protective of each other, but really…there is not a single thing wither of you two can do' the guy laughed and his cell phone rang. He grunted and walked away to answer it.

Chloe looked at Clark and smiled as he broke from the ropes and sped to knock the guy out with a punch, but the kryptonite was still on the guy's arm, so Clark collapsed again.

'Clark!' Chloe yelled and fought against the ropes until the chair fell sideways, almost knocking her out, but the side of the chair broke and the ropes became loose. She freed her hands and untied her legs.

'It's okay, I'm here' she whispered and helped him to his feet. Once out of range, Clark used heat vision to destroy the watch.

'Thanks Chloe' He gasped and looked towards the door. 'We have to help my dad'

'I agree, but don't forget I can't run at the speed of a bullet' She said and grabbed him arm as he was about to leave.

'Oh, right' He said and picked her up.

* * *

'There you are' Martha said, seeing Clark come back inside, this time with Chloe. 'Where were you?'

'Where's dad?' Clark asked quickly.

'Upstairs sleeping…why?'

'We ran into these guys who were saying they had an agreement with him, and the same guys held us hostage'

'How did they hold you-' Martha asked, but Chloe answer before she got to finish.

'Kryptonite watch' She replied and Clark ran upstairs to wake Jonathan up.

The girls followed him quickly afterwards; they had to get some answers this time…


	4. Danger to those who know

**Chapter 4 Danger To Those Who Know**

Friday

'I can't believe dad didn't tell me about this before' Clark said.

'He didn't want anyone to get hurt Clark, and when you said you were loosing you powers, well I guess he assumed he could handle it himself' Chloe sighed.

'And how is he supposed to get 1 million dollars by tomorrow? He has hardly got 1 thousand' Clark said in frustration, just being able to stop himself before he broke something.

'Hey Clark, relax…maybe Lex could help, I mean that guy does have nearly all the money in the world' Chloe suggested.

'Dad won't accept any money from either Luthors, what makes this time different?'

'Well, the lives of his family are in sake Clark'

'But you know as well, meaning you are in just as much danger as we are' Clark said and looked at her worriedly.

'Don't worry about me, I'm a big girl Clark… I know how to take care of myself. You need to find a way to get this money by sunset tomorrow' She said, trying to convince herself just as much as Clark.

'Chloe…'

'No Clark, trust me, I will be fine…besides, your dad needs you more than I do right now' She said firmly and he had no choice but to give in.

'Promise you'll be careful?' He asked her.

'Of course' She smiled at him and turned to leave, but Clark held her arm to stop her.

'Chloe, I mean it… these guys sound serious and after what happened before… I don't want to take any risks, maybe you could stay here until this is cleared up, please?'

'Clark, I have stayed here enough, your parents must be getting sick of me by now' Chloe said jokingly. 'Clark please, I know you are worried and all, but really, I will be fine' She pat his shoulder and turned to leave again, this time he let her go.

* * *

Clark decided to go and see Lex; he may be the only way they could get such a high amount of money in 24 hours.

Meanwhile, as Chloe was driving back to the Daily Planet, her cell phone rang.

'Probably Clark checking up on me, how sweet' She smiled and answered it. 'Hey, I told you not to worry-' She said but was cut off by a strange voice on the other end that she did not reconise the slightest.

'It's you who should be worried. We know that you are aware of what we are up to… and I can assure you that you won't make it back to your desk anytime soon' The voice said in a disguised tone.

'Who are you? And what do you want with me?' She said angrily.

'We just want you out of our way…permanently' the voice laughed. 'Oh and you might want to look behind you' He said and hung up.

Chloe looked behind her and saw another car following her, the driver waved to her with a cell phone in his hand.

Chloe quickly hung up and dialled the Kent's number. 'Come on… pick up!' She nearly yelled.

'Hello?' Martha answered.

'Oh thank god! Where's Clark?' She asked quickly as the car was closing in.

'He went to see Lex… is something wrong Chloe?' Martha could tell be her tone that she was scared.

'There's this guy following me, said he was going to get me or something… I need you to get in touch with Clark… fast' She gasped as the car was right behind her.

She got no answer from Martha.

'Mrs Kent? Mrs Kent, can you hear me?' Chloe panicked.

Still no answer and a thud caused by the car ramming into the back of her car made her drop the phone.

She looked behind her again in panic and then back to the road.

'Damnit' She cursed and tried to get away from him, but he was not giving in without a fight.

'Get lost you jerk!' She yelled at him, but her words posed no threat as her car was hit off the road and down a hill fast. The car rolled and the impact tossed Chloe out of the car and knocked her out as she hit the ground at enough distance that she was not injured by her car bursting into flames and exploding. She was out cold and blood leaking from the scrape on her head.

* * *

'What can I do for you Clark?' Lex asked when he saw Clark enter his office, looking worried. 'Is something wrong?'

'Can I trust you Lex?' Clark asked, shutting the office doors behind him.

'I thought you already knew that Clark. Sure… what's going on?'

'You can't tell anyone okay? And they might come after you for knowing about this'

'Knowing about what? Clark, I can't help you if you don't tell me everything' Lex said and came over.

'Some guys faked a meeting with my dad in Metropolis and told him to made me deliver 1 million dollars by sunset tomorrow…anyone who he tells about this is bound to be killed' Clark whispered.

'And if you don't?'

'He never mentioned that, but we're not taking any chances…can you help us out Lex?' Clark asked, almost desperately.

'Well, 1 million is a lot of money Clark, but I'll make a few calls… just, where is this drop off to be made exactly?' Lex asked curiously.

'Metropolis, the finance building about 5 minutes from Luthor Corp' Clark said by memory.

'Okay, I'll drop by your house tomorrow with the money, in the meantime, take care' Lex pat his back and went over to his desk phone.

'Thankyou' Clark said and left the mansion.

* * *

He arrived home and heard his dad sleeping upstairs, so his mum would be in the kitchen, but she wasn't anywhere to be seen.

'Maybe she had some things to do' He sighed, but noticed the phone was hanging off the hook, which was weird… even for them.

He picked it up and heard that it was still in contact with someone.

'Hello?' He asked, but there was just a feint sound of cars driving past at distance to whoever Martha was talking to, as he assumed it was her that had been using the phone because she was the only other person here and his dad was snoring. He also heard the sounds of what could have been a fire.

'Hello?' He asked again, but still no reply from the other end. If only he knew where the caller was.

The snoring stopped and a few minutes later Jonathan came down the stairs looking confused; he saw Clark hanging up the phone and went over to him.

'Something wrong son?' He asked.

'Where's mum?' He asked.

'Well, she should be right here, why?'

'I can't find her and the phone was hanging off the hook' Clark told him, making him just as concerned as Clark was.

'You think someone took her?' Jonathan asked worriedly, remembering his deal with Gary.

'Maybe' Clark replied. 'Oh and you don't have to worry, Lex is bring the money tomorrow and my powers seem to be all back, we can do this'

'Lex Luthor? Clark, why did you turn to him for help without asking me first?' Jonathan asked, getting angrily about needing help from Lex and the absence of Martha was also getting on his nerves more than he would have liked as Gary did say he would kill all that knew of their deal.

'Because I knew you would say no. Dad please, lives are in sake here… don't you think you should throw your pride aside for one moment?' Clark said and grabbed his coat.

'Where are you going?'

'To see Chloe, she can trace the last call made here, it might tell us where mum is' He said and rushed off to the Daily Planet.

* * *

Upon arriving, he noticed her desk was empty and looked untouched, meaning she never made it back here.

He used her computer to trace the call from his house and discovered it was from Chloe's cell phone. He tried to find the location of the phone, but only got a 10-metre radius.

He left the Daily Planet to search the area.

Clark noticed that some of the bushes on the side of the road up ahead looked very run-down, and smoke was coming from down the hill. Remembering the sound of flames he assumed he had heard on the other end of the phone, and the sounds of cars driving past at distance, Clark raced down the hill and found Chloe's car still slightly on fire.

'Chloe!' He yelled and then saw her nearby, half hidden by a bush. He ran over and checked for a pulse. She did not have one, but it could be from his reaction to seeing her like that. He attempted to calm down and tried again.

He gave a sigh of relief and picked her up, taking her to the nearest hospital as fast as he could as she had a lot of blood on her and was unconscious.

'Hang in there Chloe' He told her as he rushed to find a doctor.

* * *

Saturday

'How is Chloe?' Jonathan asked when Clark came home around lunchtime.

'She's got mild injuries and a bad scrap on her head, but she should be okay. Has Lex came yet?'

'No, but I'm sure he-' Jonathan saw Lex approaching the door with a briefcase.

'Perfect timing Lex' Clark said as he turned to see what Jonathan was looking at.

'What can I say?' Lex asked and handed Clark the briefcase. 'It's all in there' He told him. 'When are you doing to the drop off?'

'An hour before sunset' Clark told him, although he could tell that Jonathan had no intention of the idea of letting Lex in on everything that was going on, but Clark had already told him, so none of that mattered now.

'I would suggest a little earlier, I doubt they will make it as easy as you think, just because you have the money…doesn't mean they'll be nice' Lex told him.

'Thanks Lex' Clark said, gripping the briefcase closely.

'Only trying to help' Lex smiled and left before Jonathan could say anything.

* * *

And so, the day when past with no sign of Martha and Chloe was still sleeping. Clark made his way to the finance building in Metropolis at just over an hour before sunset.

'So you could make it after all' Gary smiled with a gun pointed at Clark.

'If I give you the money, will you promise to leave my family and friends alone?'

'I have no real interest in them Clark… it is you who caught my fascination'

'Why me?' Clark asked. 'And what have you done with my mum!'

'She is fine' Gary said and pointed to a chair where she sat bound to and her mouth taped. 'Once we get what we want, you can have her back safe and sound'

'And what do you want from me?' Clark demanded, having a feeling that the 1 million was not all this guy was after.

'Proof…of how different you are'

'What do you mean?' Clark asked, afraid he was talking about what Clark assumed he was.

'I know all about you boy, and you are going to give me proof or else your mum will take the fall, oh and I have one of my men at the hospital for if you give me any trouble' Gary smiled.

'Leave them out of this!' Clark yelled.

'Give me my money and proof that you are an alien…and they will go unharmed' Gary said and pointed his gun at Martha.

Clark did not see any other option, so he handed Gary the briefcase. 'What do you want me to do?'

Gary got out a video recorder and set it up on a stand. 'I'm going to shoot you and you are to just stand there while this camera catches it all… then we can try a few other tricks to show the world what you have been hiding from them'

'Why are you doing this?' Clark asked, trying to think of a plan fast.

'The world has the right to know and I have the right to be rich and famous' Gary smiled and turned the camera on. 'Ready?' Gary asked in excitement and fired five rounds at him.

Clark did as he was told as stood there while they hit him, leaving holes in his shirt, but he was of course fine. Then he tried his heat vision to destroy the camera, but he did not have it back yet.

'Well done!' Gary said, over-excited about his arising fame that was sure to happen if Clark didn't do something fast.

'Now let's try you falling off this building and being left unharmed' Gary said and turned his back to write on a piece of paper.

Clark tried heat vision again, but still no luck. There was no way Clark was going to jump of this building in public eye and on camera. 'Gary please'

Gary ignored him for a minute, and then picked up his cell phone. 'You don't want anything to happen to your injured friend now do you?'

'I can't do this for you' Clark told him, really not liking to be taking such a huge risk with Chloe's life.

'What about your friend? Why don't we see what she has to say on the matter' Gary said and called one of his men at the hospital. 'I'm having slight difficulty, maybe the girl can beg for him to go through with this if she wants to live' Gary told him.

'She is not here' He replied.

'What do you mean? How could she have escaped?' Gary yelled as Clark tried heat vision again with no success.

'She was here a minute ago, but when I came to check up on here… she had vanished'

'Well find her!' Gary yelled and hung up. 'You had something to do with this…I know it' Gary screamed angrily at Clark and pointed his gun at Martha, whom had woken up and was now struggling against the ropes that held her to the chair.

'How could I?' Clark asked, glad Chloe was out of harms way.

'I don't know, but you did! And now your mummy is going to have to pay for it' Gary fired at Martha and Clark sped to knock the bullets out of her way. He fell to the floor after his dive, but got up quickly. Clark took the tape off Martha' mouth and undid the ropes.

Gary did not like how this was going, so he grabbed the suitcase and made a dash for his camera.

Clark saw this and made one last attempt at heat vision, making the camera burst into flames at last.

'No!' Gary yelled and then headed to the exit, only to be blocked off by Clark.

'Get lost!' Gary yelled at him. 'Help!' He called out and one of his other men came running, but unlucky for Clark, the man was the same one he had run into during the time of being help hostage, meaning he was wearing a replacement green kryptonite watch.

Clark cried out and fell to the floor in pain.

'What the?' Gary asked, but did not like to take his chances… he rushed out the door as Martha ran over to Clark.

'Are you okay?' She asked him as he sat up.

'I have to stop him' Clark gasped.

'He is gone Clark, but you destroyed the evidence, so he has nothing on you' Martha tried to convince him.

'But he still knows and he is not going to leave everyone I care about alone until he gets what he wants'

The door opened and Lex came in. 'Is everyone okay?'

'Lex? What are you doing here?' Martha asked.

'Please tell me you had noting to do with this' Clark said angrily.

'Not on the contrary Clark, how could you think like that? I would however, like to let you know that the metropolis police have got the two men and they are currently on their way to where they belong…prison, along with several from the hospital in Smallville, they won't bother you again; I made sure of that' Lex said and held up the briefcase. 'Also that you do not owe me anything as I got my money back' He smiled, letting them know that Jonathan will not have to stress himself to death over paying him back.

'Thankyou' Clark sighed in relief and helped his mother out the door, following Lex to a helicopter.

'How did you get here, I don't see your truck anywhere' Lex noticed.

'Long story' Clark replied.

Lex helped them into his helicopter and got in beside them. 'Okay' He told the pilot. 'So Clark, what exactly did this guy want with you? I heard him yelling something about an alien with superpowers, but I doubt he would be talking about you'

Clark and Martha gave a fake laugh.

'Of course not, I would be green' Clark joked, hoping to throw Lex of the trail. 'He wanted money, but I'm just as curious as you are about some alien he claimed to have met' Clark added and then pretended to be too tired to talk by closing his eyes and leaning back in his seat. Hopefully Lex will let this one go to rest…


	5. Letter of Confession

Chapter 5 Letter of Confession 

'Clark!' Chloe yelled and ran to hug him as he and Martha walked inside. Jonathan also spotted them and hugged Martha tightly.

'Chloe, you're okay!' Clark said happily.

'Yeah, I told you I could take care of myself…but ah that backfired, and Mr Kent was a good help' She said, a little embarrassed.

'I'm so sorry I brought this all upon everyone' Jonathan said as he continued to hug Martha.

'It's not your fault dad, really' Clark said as Chloe let him go. 'It's mine'

'Clark! This is not your fault' Martha told him. 'Honestly Jonathan, you two are as bad as each other' She sighed and noticed it was dark outside. 'I Guess I should be getting dinner on than'

'You just came back from something like that and your first thoughts are of feeding us?' Clark laughed.

'Well someone has to' She smiled.

'You going to stay again Chloe?' Clark asked her.

'No, I have a few huge boxes of old stuff from the torch to go through that I've been putting off for…well forever I guess' She sighed. 'Oh, and my transport kinda went up in flames'

'I'll be back later' Clark told his parents and followed Chloe outside.

'I could get used to this' Chloe smiled as Clark picked her up and sped towards her place.

'Don't get too used to it' He replied and put her down again. 'Would you like some help with the sorting?' Clark offered, as he was still a little worried someone would come after her and he would not be there to save her like he was with her car crash and when the armed guys were watching her at the hospital.

'Sure, I mean if you don't mind' she said and unlocked the door, going up to her room. 'This could take awhile'

'I don't mind' He replied and helped her carry boxes downstairs.

'Okay, I struggle with one box, and you come downstairs carrying three, show off' She teased and opened the nearest box. 'Wow, these bring back memories' She sighed, getting papers and other stuff from the box.

'Yeah' Clark agreed, picking up some papers of stories she had published at the torch and photos she had hoped to need.

After an hour or so, Chloe put down the files she was holding and turned to Clark. 'Can I get you something? Maybe a hot chocolate?' She asked.

'Sure, that'd be great' He smiled and she went to the kitchen while he picked up a scrunched up piece of paper that seemed to have been there for awhile, forgotten under amongst everything, which didn't seem to be hard as there was a lot of stuff.

'What's this?' He wondered and checked Chloe could not see him. Curiosity getting the better of him, he read it:

**I want to let you in on a secret Clark. I am not who you think I am, in fact my disguise is so thin, I am surprised you haven't seen right through me.**

_**I am the girl of your dreams masquerading as your best friend**_

_**Sometimes I want to rip off this façade like I did at the spring formal, but I can't because you'll get scared and you'll run away again. So I decided it's better to live with a lie than expose my true feelings.**_

**My dad told me there are two types of girls. The ones you grow out of and the ones you grow into. I really hope I'm the latter. I may not be the one you love today, but I'll let you go for now, hoping one day you will fly back to me because I think you're worth the wait.**

'Wow' Clark sighed; he had no idea that Chloe had felt so deeply about him. He knew she had liked him in the past and now he wasn't sure if those feelings for him were really over, but he was rather flattered, and almost glad as his feelings for her had not laid to rest either.

'Wow what?' Chloe asked, giving him a cup of hot chocolate and noticing the letter in his hands. 'Oh…um, about that' her mind rushed to think of an excuse, but it was very unexpected as she could have sworn she had thrown that letter away years ago.

'Did you really write this?' Clark asked.

'Um yeah, ages ago…when you and your mum got sick' Chloe said, memories of Clark whispering "Lana" right after she had read it to him came floating back, bringing back her painful feelings that she had felt back then.

'And why didn't I know anything about it until now? I mean you wrote it for me, but why did I never get it?' He asked, knowing that back then she was sure to have given it to him at some point.

'You were sick, so I read it to you…but you obviously were too unconscious to have remembered, and with a certain someone on your mind' Chloe said, holding tears at bay.

'You read this to me?' He asked in surprise. 'And what do you mean "A certain someone on my mind" Are you talking about Lana?'

'Who else? Right after I read that, you had some nerve to be dreaming of her' Chloe said.

'How did you know I was dreaming of her' Clark asked, but it was starting to make some form of sense.

'You said "Lana" with a slight smile on your face…but it was ages ago, so I…I'm over it now' She sniffed, trying to hard to keep her feelings withstrained.

'And so was Lana and I…I broke up with her about a month ago…remember?' He said, noticing her hurt feelings in her voice and eyes. 'Chloe, I didn't know; if you had told me I-'

'You'd what? I think it was obvious that you had feelings for only her Clark, even if I had told you last month when you two broke up…what difference would it make? I think that more than anyone, I would be one of the few who are aware that you have no feelings like that for me and that Lana always comes first, so can we just forget about it and move on?' She asked, a little louder than intended.

'That's not true' Clark said without thinking.

'What's not true? That Lana always comes first in your mind?'

'That too, but I mean that it's not true about you saying I … saying I have no feelings like that for you. Chloe I care a lot about you, I thought you already knew that'

'How could I know? And I mean more than friends kind of feelings' She said, not sure where this was going as he certainly wasn't denying having feelings for her.

'I know what you mean, but this letter is very nicely written, just like everything else you write… and the part where you say "_you'll get scared and you'll run away again" _I wouldn't disagree to that, I really don't want to lose you Chloe, that's why I think we are better off as friends…well until I read this letter…that was my plan' He said and looked at the ground, slightly embarrassed as this is not what he expected to be saying during sorting through boxes and drinking hot chocolate.

Chloe just sat there in shock, taking a few moments to recover. 'I agree that our friendship has been nothing as it has been the last year or so…but is burying these feelings deep down forever really going to solve anything? Or are we just too scared to act upon them at risk of what we already have?' She asked, wiping her dry tears away with a renewed hope.

Clark looked at her, thinking if it was really a good idea or not. They both cared as much for their friendship as they did for each other. And he remembered what he had heard Lex say once _"There's nothing worst than a missed opportunity" _

Chloe looked at him, trying to work out what he was thinking, but he face showed no emotion, leaving that quest seemingly impossible.

Clark took a deep breath and thought of what to say and how to explain what he had decided.

'Chloe…after all these years that is has hurt you more than it has myself, to take that away would be a relief, but are you sure it's what we should be doing?' He had to leave this for her to decide, as she could have told him at any time, but chose to wait; there must be a reason for it all.

'Putting our friendship at risk for a chance of something even more special? I think we can deal with it Clark, after all we have been through, I really think we can make it through and you won't have to hide your secret from me' She said with such determination that he believed her. 'But if you don't want to…' She let her words hang there, he knew she was unsure of what he was trying to say, but he was trying to work out what he was thinking.

'I have to go' he said, hating himself for doing what she would see as running away.

'Clark please-'

'I need time to think about this, Chloe I promise I am not running from you this time…I just need to clear my head' he said, putting the cup down and getting to his feet, Chloe did the same.

'Come and see me tomorrow, then I swear I will give you answers' He said and she nodded, a little disappointed, but relived he did not just leave without a reason.

'Okay, I will be there at 10' She sighed.

Clark knew what she must have been thinking, but his own mind was racing and he could not keep up, he really needed to be alone for a while to allow his mind to be clear.

'Goodnight' He said and kissed her cheek, with that he left in a blink of an eye.

'Damnit!' He cursed and hit his cupboard, causing the door to break in half and fall onto the floor, waking his parents up with a start.

'How could I have not noticed something like this?' He asked himself and threw his alarm clock as it went off, which was now a complete wreck in the corner of his room.

'Clark? What is going on son?' Jonathan asked as he and Martha came running in to see why Clark was causing disaster in his own bedroom.

'Nothing' He said and sat on his bed in utmost frustration.

'This doesn't look like nothing to me' Jonathan said, noticing half of his stuff was broken and there was a large crack in his wall.

'Are you okay?' Martha asked and sat next to him.

'Chloe still likes me' He said after a few minutes of silence. 'And I didn't notice, even after all this time' He said and Jonathan stopped him from breaking his bed as well.

'Do you feel the same way?' Martha asked.

'That's not the point!' Clark nearly yelled. 'She poured her heart out to me when I was sick, and I never knew until tonight when I found the letter she had read out to me when I was asleep'

'You were very sick son, who would you have known?' Jonathan asked him as Martha rubbed his back in effort to calm him down.

'I don't know, but I feel so guilty for having no clue that she still felt that way' He sighed angrily.

'It's not your fault, so put that behind you… what is done is done' Jonathan told him.

'Where are you going to go from here?' Martha asked Clark.

'Chloe's coming over tomorrow morning at 10… I promised to tell her if we are going to act on our feelings at risk of our friendship or not' Clark replied; now wishing he had not told Chloe that.

'Not everything has to be a sacrifice son, but it could be the start of something better than a friendship' Jonathan yawned.

'You will still be best friends Clark, but you'll just have…um, several more…' She looked at Jonathan to help her explain what she meant.

'It's okay, I get it' Clark said and left the room to have breakfast.

'Do you think he will be okay?' Martha asked.

'He'll be fine' Jonathan smiled at Martha and they headed downstairs too, not wanting to go back to bed in case Clark decided to cause another disaster.

Clark went up to the loft at 7am to try and think straight.

'If I had red kryptonite, I would go all for it, forget the consequences…but I have to work this out properly' He said to himself.

He wrote down ideas of things to say, among other things for 3 hours until it was time to face Chloe at 10.

He waited, but then came 10:30 and then 11.

'I guess she has changed her mind' He frowned and was about to leave when he heard a car pulling up outside. He peeked and realised it was non other than Chloe's car.

'Or not' He sighed and waited for her to find him while his nerves went into overdrive.

'You're late' Clark said when he heard Chloe approaching.

'Yeah I got really held up at the Daily Planet, I'm so sorry' Chloe said and stopped at the top of the stairs.

'I'm not mad' He said and turned to face her.

'So ah…have you been doing some serious thinking?' She asked, not liking the silence.

'Actually…no' Clark said and looked at the floor.

'And is that supposed to be a good thing or a bad thing?' Chloe asked, hating how her voice was trembling with uncertainty almost as much as she was.

Clark looked at her, gulping and trying not to forget all the words he had planned to say.

'I didn't need to' He finally told her. ' If there is one thing I have learnt from you, it is that following your instincts gets you a lot further then your mind … okay, I just forgot what I had planned to say, but it's not about if I think our friendship will last or about how anyone else will see it as, but all I had to do was to ask myself if I wanted to be with you so much that it is worth the risk' He said, fearing he was not making much sense now.

'And do you Clark?' Chloe spoke in an almost whisper as she took a small step closer to him. 'Is this what you really want?'

'To be completely honest? I don't know, but I care about you Chloe… shouldn't that be enough?'

Chloe looked away upon hearing that. 'It's enough Clark…for friends' She said and turned to leave but Clark sped in front of her before she took another step.

'Do you remember in eighth grade, when you told me that you always wished you could fly over Metropolis with not a single care in the world?' He smiled and picked her up.

'Wow!' Chloe gasped as he flew them over the countryside and all the way to Metropolis.

'Yeah' He agreed. 'Chloe?'

'Yep' She asked and took her eyes of the scenery to look at him.

'Did I ever tell you that I love you?'

'Um…' Chloe said in shock. 'Well, no Clark… I ah, I believe you left that part out'

Clark smiled at her and landed on the top of a building, the thought that someone might have seen them just came to his mind, causing a slight panic as he had forgotten that there are a lot of people in a city.

'Help! Someone help me!' A woman's cry reached his ears.

'Clark? What is it?'

'A woman, she needs help'

'Then go… I'll wait for you' Chloe told him, afraid what would happen if they were seen, but did not want to ignore a woman in need of a hero like Clark.

'Chloe I don't know, what if I am seen?' He asked.

'Use the door over there and go down the building'

'That is a long way down' He said, realising their level of hight.

'Please, help me!' The woman yelled again.

'Alright, I'll be back' He said and ran to the door leading to the building they were on.

'Of course' Chloe sighed and stood there, feeling the breeze on her face.

She walked to the edge of the building to see if she could see Clark, but wherever he was, it was not below her.

'Oh well' She said and looked at the sky in amazement. She really was high up and the feeling was starting to be quite scary.

'Hey! How did you get up here?' A man yelled as he came through the door.

Chloe was startled from being caught off guard, and being as close to the edge as she was, well she was not at the edge anymore, she looked upwards and saw the sky getting further and further away as the wind blew her hair like a hurricane, realisation hit her like a brick… she was falling…


	6. Gift from JorEl

Chapter 6 Gift from Jor-El 

Chloe opened her eyes and could still feel a soft breeze on her face. She was no longer falling, but she was defiantly also no longer in Metropolis. She sat up and waited for her vision to clear.

'How did I get here?' She asked as she reconized the Fortress Of Solitude all around her. She got to her feet and held her coat close as it was cold and she was so confused. She took a step and almost tripped on what appeared to be a long crystal on the ground. She picked it up and examined in, until she was given a fright by a loud voice filling her ears, but it was like she could hear it in her mind as well.

'_Greetings human' _Jor-El spoke.

'What is going on?' She asked, more to herself then the voice she assumed was just part of this bizarre dream she was in.

'I have saved you from a fate that I belive was quite undeserved for someone like you' 

'Someone like me? What are you talking about? And who are you?' Chloe asked, thinking that if she was dreaming, she may as well go along with it.

'I am Jor-El, father of your friend Kal-El, and I have a mission for you' 

'Jor-El? Clark's biological father? What do you want with me? I am not one of you people' Chloe said, her mind spinning with confusion and cold.

'Today, thanks to you, my son has taken his first step towards his true destiny, just for that I would like to congratulate you for helping him in that task' 

'I didn't do anything, he did it all himself and what "destiny" are you on about? I think Clark is the one who should be deciding that, not you' She said, wishing she was back in Metropolis, but then again things weren't going all so well back there.

'You may be confused now, but I have faith in you and trust you will lead my son Kal-El in the right direction'

'Listen up here buddy! I am not a tour guild and have no intention of being one, you got that?' Chloe said, wishing Clark was here to tell Jor-El so.

'You understand the meaning of certain choices that could be made for the wrong reasons and the consequences for one's actions… so I think you have earnt the reward I am about to present you with'

'That seems like a really weird reason to reward someone, especially in your sake, not that I'm complaining' She said, hoping to wake up soon.

'_My son was right to trust in you human' _Jor-El said.

'I have a name you know!' Chloe yelled as a blinding light surrounded her and when she had the chance to open her eyes again, she was shocked to find that she was still falling, seeing how dangerously close the cemented ground was.

'Here's to nothing' She said, really not wanting to die, but what was she to do about it? Fly away? Very unlikely.

Chloe suddenly came to a stop. She opened her eyes to find people looking at her weirdly and Clark running over.

'Chloe? Are you okay?' He asked and helped her to her feet.

'Yeah, I am weirdly okay' She said, almost speechless and thinking she was still dreaming.

'Some say you fell from the building, yet you are fine, so they must have been seeing things, but … how did you get down?' Clark asked and led her to an empty ally so he could pick her up and start to fly back to Smallville.

'I…I did fall' She said, trying to remember what happened, but all that she could was that she had been given a fright from a guy on the roof and then fell to find she survived it.

'That's impossible' Clark said in shock.

'So is flying, yet look at you' Chloe said, glad to have her feet on solid ground again as he landed.

'That's different and you know it' Clark sighed. 'Are you sure you're okay?'

'No I am not Clark! I just fell god-knows-how-far from a million storey building and survived! Does that strike you as someone who would be okay?' She snapped. 'I think I should go home an rest before my good luck runs off on me' She sighed.

Clark nodded and gave her a hug. 'I'll drop by the Daily Planet later on okay?'

'Sure' She said, feeling awkward for some reason. 'Bye' She walked to her car and drove off.

'So she just fell from a building and no harm done?' Jonathan asked Clark over dinner that night.

'Yeah, I don't know how she did it'

'Do you think she processes some kind of powers?' Martha asked him.

'Chloe?' Clark laughed. 'No, I know her…it's impossible'

'Well maybe you don't know her as well as you think you do son, it's the only other explanation' Jonathan replied, just as confused as Martha and Clark were over the whole situation in Metropolis.

'I'm going to see Chloe' Clark said and got up.

'But you haven't eaten anything' Martha said.

'I'm not hungry' Clark replied and left.

'Coming!' Chloe replied and opened the door. 'Oh, hey Clark. I was wondering when you were going to come by' She smiled.

Lana looked up and avoided Clark's expression. 'Don't worry, I'll get out of your way' She said in annoyance and grabbed her coat. 'I have some place to be anyway' She left the room without looking at Clark.

'Oh Lana, that's okay-' Clark started, but she was already gone.

'I see you two are getting along fine' Chloe sighed. 'Oh, where are my manners? Come in Clark' She sighed and moved from the doorway.

'Thanks, um I was wondering…about today' He said and sat on her bed while she took the desk chair.

'Yeah I figured that is what this little awkward visit is about' She said. 'I don't know what happened…one minute I was falling and the next I was…' Realisation hit her as she remembered a white surrounding and a voice.

'What is it?' Clark asked, noticing that Chloe stopped in mid-sentence.

'I don't know, but I think I ended up somewhere before I hit the ground…of course! The Fortress of Solitude…weird, I can't remember why or how, but I have a feeling that is where I went then I was zapped back to falling to the ground'

'Zapped?' Clark repeated.

'Transported, zapped… whatever' She rolled her eyes.

'Do you remember what happened there?' Clark asked, hoping Jor-El was not on that list.

'No, but I felt weird when I was falling afterwards, like I had more energy or something'

'I'll be back' He said and went to speed off.

'Clark wait!' Chloe rushed to stop him, but neither of them predicted that she would super-speed in front of him.

'Woah' She replied with a grin.

'How did you do that?' Clark asked in shock.

'I don't know, but I like it' She smiled.

'Chloe, this is serious, whatever happened you seemed to have gotten powers like…'

'Like yours' Chloe shrugged when he seemed doubtful. 'That would explain how I survived the fall, not to mention I had a massive cut on my arm from a few days ago, but it's completely gone now'

'What else can you do?' Clark asked, deciding Jor-El defiantly had something to do with this.

'Let's find out' Chloe grinned and sped off'

'Chloe' Clark warned and raced after her. 'Where are we going?' He asked when he caught up.

'Your farm, lots of stuff to throw around' She grinned.

'Chloe' He said again, but they reached the farm and Chloe looked around in excitement. She walked over to the trunk and put her hands under it, ready to lift.

'Wait!' Clark ran over. 'Don't use much strength, assuming you can lift it… well you don't want to throw it'

She looked like she was going to argue the matter, but did as he said and used slight effort; the truck lifted with ease.

'This is awesome!' She cheered as Jonathan watched in shock from the Barn as he had gone to collect a spare part for the kitchen sink, which had broken again.

'This is not good' Clark sighed.

'How can it be bad? Oh come on! Lighten up a bit, at least you're not alone in your 1 person world' She smiled. 'What else? Heat vision? X-ray thing? How do I do them?'

Clark did have to admit that he had never seem her so happy and that it did feel comforting to have someone with powers like his, but Chloe was good at getting her way…with or without powers.

'I'll show you' He sighed.

Jonathan walked unnoticed back to the house to tell Martha; whom was just as shocked as he was over it all.

After Chloe had x-rayed just about everything useless, as well as nearly set the house and barn on fire, the two went inside, as it was late.

'Remind me why I am staying here again? I mean it's not like it a long trip home' Chloe yawned.

'I don't think it's a good idea until you gain control of your powers and we still have to work out how this is even possible' Clark said as they headed upstairs.

'I have control' She said. 'Yikes'

'What?' Clark asked and noticed her looking him up and down. 'You don't look like you're in control, and I hope you're not doing what you look like you're doing'

Chloe looked away. 'Of course not, like I said I have complete con…' She accidentally set a picture on the wall on fire.

'Chloe!' he said and used ice breathe to put it out.

'Awww, I want that power' She complained, still not seeing the seriousness of the whole situation.

Clark sighed and pushed her into the guest room. 'Sleep' He told her. 'And do not set anything else on fire'

'Sleep? I don't feel the slightest tired…but okay' She said as Clark gave her a warning look. 'Oh and Clark' She said with a smirk.

'Yeah?' He turned back around.

'If I have all the powers you do…I can hurt you right? I mean as much as a human can hurt another human?'

'I guess…why?' He asked worriedly.

'Oh no reason' She continued to smirk. 'Goodnight' She turned and closed the guest door behind her. She lay on the bed and used x-ray vision to watch Clark, only she had assumed he would be going to bed as well, but he didn't. Clark put on a coat and crept downstairs, with a curious Chloe right behind him.

He made his way up to the loft and looked at the sky through his telescope. Chloe stood on the stairs behind him, assuming he knew she was there.

'Stupid darn thing!' Clark cursed and hit the wood of the barn angrily, causing it to crack in half, but no real damage.

'Woah Clark! What's going on?' Chloe asked and came over.

'Chloe? What are you doing here? I thought I told you to go to bed'

'What are you, my father? And what are you doing here? Is everything okay? Has this got something to do with my powers?'

'You still don't get it do you?' Clark looked at her in disbelief.

'Get what? I don't understand why it is such a big deal Clark. I have powers like you…so what?'

'Chloe! You are a human with Kryptonian powers, doesn't that strike you as a little odd?'

'Maybe, but maybe not… what if I am not human Clark?' Chloe said, in half-humour.

'Chloe, as cool as that would be…you are human'

'How do you know that Clark?'

'Because getting your powers is a growing process…you got these all at once and-' Clark was cut off by a bright light filling everything around them, forcing them to cover their eyes to avoid becoming blind.

When they opened them, they were in a completely unfamiliar place…a forest to be specific.


	7. Confused World

**Chapter 7 Confused World**

It was dark and there were no sounds, as if someone had hit a mute button on the whole place. The trees were decently spread apart, but very old and fragile looking. If it weren't for the fire flies flying around the place, Clark and Chloe would have been left in utter darkness and have no clue where they were, but either way, it was unsure how they had even ended up there in the first place.

'Okay Clark, what did you do?' Chloe asked in panic and stood closer to him so she wouldn't loose him in the dim light.

'Nothing' Clark said and looked around in confusion. 'Did you?'

'No, I don't think so' She replied and wished she had a coat with her.

'Here' Clark gave her his as he had much bigger things to worry about than the non-existent cold.

'Thanks' She put it on and had another look around, hoping her eyes will adjust to the darkness a little more, but no luck.

'Maybe we could use heat vision…' Clark thought aloud.

'And risk burning the place down, nah uh Clark' Chloe told him and sighed. 'One careful step at a time will do fine for now…oh if only I had my camera'

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Smallville…

'One…two…three…clear!' The doctor said loudly.

'We have a heartbeat' the nurse replied and they breathed in slight relief. 'But Miss Sullivan is still in a coma' the nurse added.

'And how is Mr Kent?' Doctor Burwood asked.

'Same' She replied. 'And his parents are in the waiting room with Mr Sullivan'

'I'll go tell them the situation, place these two in the same room so we can keep a closer eye on them' Doctor Burwood said and left the room.

* * *

'Face it Clark…we're loster than lost' Chloe said and grabbed his arm to stop him. 'And I need to breathe'

Clark watched her sit on a rock that they had passed about 3 times already.

Chloe used x-ray vision by accident as she was trying to adapt to the dark, and noticed that a bottle tree a metre away was hollow and had a doorknob-like thing on it. She got up and with Clark following her; she held the knob-thing and pulled.

'Ta da!' she smiled.

'How did you know that was there?'

'You have something called 'powers' Clark…learn to use them' She smirked teasingly and looked down into the tree, but it was even darker than their firefly surroundings. 'Well don't just stand there' She said and grabbed his arm again and started to walked into the tree…to find there was no ground…it was a hole…

Down…down…down, they fell into the bottomless, endless hole of unknown danger…

* * *

'But how could this happen?' Mr Sullivan asked Doctor Burwood.

'We are unsure, it seems they have some into contact with some sort of energy wave, their minds are in place that one would call 'another dimension' but it is more complicated than that'

'What's going to happen to them?' Martha said tearfully while Jonathan held her close.

'To be honest? We are not completely sure. Our test results are inconclusive, but I truthfully think that it is up to them to find their way back to us, they need some sort of reason to come back…they are lost in a world of the past, all their bad experiences will be all they see and hear…I guess the only good thing is that they are with each other as they were exposed to the presumed energy wave at the same time and were within contact of one another' Dr Burwood explained the best way he could.

'So basically we just sit here and hope they can make it?' Jonathan asked, slightly angry.

'No, you should get home and rest…they won't be awake for awhile yet' Dr Burwood said.

'Isn't there something…anything we can do?' Mr Sullivan asked desperately, the thought of loosing Chloe was too hard for him to imagine.

'The best thing you can do for them right now, is go home…get some rest and you can visit them first thing tomorrow morning okay?' He then left them to dwell upon the idea.

* * *

'Clark?' Chloe sat up and looked around, only to find herself alone. It was daybreak and a red sun was rising. She was lying on the ground of someone's backyard, but as she got up and looked at the house…or what used to be the house. It was easily reconized as the house Lana used to live in with her aunt, years and years back, but it had been burnt.

Chloe looked towards the Kent farm, maybe that's where Clark is. She felt weak, like she was at the end of a sickness. She slowly started to walk in the direction of the farm, but it seemed so far away and her powers were gone.

'Stupid powers, why didn't someone tell me they had a 'use by' date?' She sighed and tripped over a large stick. The Kent farm was getting further and further away the more she walked. She started running towards it, calling for Clark, but when she stopped to catch her breath, it was gone.

'What the? What is going on?' she gasped as her surroundings began to blur and she found herself in the torch, sitting at her desk, or what had been her desk during the days of high school.

* * *

'Mr Luthor' Dr Burwood said the next day and shook his hand as a greeting.

'I came as soon as I heard the news, how are they doing?' Lex asked.

'They are in a comatose state sir-' He was then cut off by a nurse running into his office.

'Doctor, the Kent boy has broken out of his coma, and is still stabilised' She told him.

'Has he woken?' Lex asked.

'No sir' She replied and looked at the doctor for instructions.

'Apply a drip, I'll be there in a minute' Dr Burwood told her after a few minutes thought, then turned back to Lex. 'We will have to talk later, my patient needs me'

Lex nodded and followed the doctor to the room to see how Chloe and Clark were doing.

* * *

Chloe put the phone down in disappointment; she had been hoping it was working.

'Hopeless' She sighed and dialled up to the internet on her computer. 'Son of a-'

'Um, hi' Lana said and knocked, then came inside, looking cheerful.

'Oh thank god! Lana, something happened…Clark and I were in the barn and then a light flashed and we ended up someplace then a tree…hole…darkness and well…ah' Chloe tried to explain, but Lana looked very confused.

'Chloe? Are you okay?' She asked in concern.

'Yes…I mean no…I don't know…where is Clark?' She asked, her mind racing with questions and confusion.

'Hey Chloe, can you look up…oh am I interrupting something?' Clark asked as he came into the room.

'Not at all Clark' Lana smiled. 'And you said you wanted to talk to me about something?'

'Yeah, how about you come over after school and we'll talk' Clark asked her.

'Sure, sounds like a date' Lana smiled. 'I also heard you have a crush on me Clark…now why would someone say something like that?'

Chloe looked at Clark in shock and confusion.

'Well, I wouldn't call it that…but ah…well um, there isn't anyone else I know who is more special…ah' Clark said quickly and nervously.

Chloe turned away through tears and listened to their talking, Clark seemed to have forgotten all about the feelings he had claimed to have for her.

'I have go' Chloe said and rushed past them to the girls toilets. She locked a cubicle and put the toilet lid down so she could sit on it. She cried out her pain until she felt a soft wind.

'He doesn't care' a teenaged boy's voice said and Chloe noticed she was in yet another different place, the house she had lived in with her father 'When will you see that your feelings for him are pointless?'

* * *

'Chloe? Chloe come on, please wake up' Clark said as he sat by her bedside the following afternoon.

'She can't hear you' the doctor told him as he came in to check on the machines hooked up to Chloe.

'Is she going to be okay?' Clark begged more than asked.

'Depends, does she have any terrible things in her past or family history?' Dr Burwood asked.

* * *

'Why can't I stay in one place!' Chloe yelled as her surroundings blurred again and she found herself in the Kent barn with a guy her age that she had never seen before.

'Because there is so much for you to realise Chloe' He said. 'So much you are blinded to with your feelings for Clark'

'Who are you anyway?' She asked while glaring at him.

'Someone who can see what is right in front of you…look at your mother…and Clark'

'What do they have to do with anything?' Chloe said, painful memories resurfacing in her mind.

'Your mother is crazy, it's in your genes…but when will you realise that Clark doesn't care about you…it's Lana he calls out to when he is ill…it's Lana he wanted to take to every dance…it's Lana that he left you at the spring formal for'

'No…you're wrong!' Chloe said, louder then she intended. 'How do you know? Have you been spying on my friends and me? Because if you have I'll…'

'They are not your friends Chloe…What are you to Clark? A search engine? A sidekick? How do you know that he isn't being nice because you know his secret, afraid you'll tell the world if he is more honest to you? Face it Chloe, you're not as important to everyone as you think you are' He told her.

'Well you seem quite confident with yourself Mr-no-name, but there is still my father…I know he loves me…and Lois, well she's more like a sister' Chloe said, trying to keep her voice and face more calm than the emotions breaking down inside her.

'Of course, Lucy went bad, Lois needs a replacement and you look so much like you mother, you father must see you as her'

'You're wrong' Chloe told him in a whisper.

'Am I?' The guy asked and pointed to the photo frames of Lana in Clark's loft.

'So? They are friends' Chloe said.

'Really? Or is it more that meets the eye?' The guy smiled when he saw in Chloe's eyes that she was breaking down inside.

'You're right, you can see right in front of me…and if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were blind' She said, but was losing the emotional battle that was fighting to release tears and accept the pain that she thought had been long buried years ago.

'You are the one blinded by images that aren't real, images that make you believe you can pretend-' The guy didn't get the chance to finish what he was saying as Chloe kicked him in a place no guy likes to be kicked.

'Go to hell' Chloe told him and ran from the barn crying.

* * *

'Clark, come home and get some rest' Jonathan told him later that night.

'I'm staying here, this is where I'm needed' Clark replied and turned away. 'I want to be here when Chloe wakes up'

'If she wakes up' A nurse nearby added. 'Her body is undergoing high levels of stress and emotions, too much for her to handle'

'She will wake up' Clark told her with determination. 'She's Chloe, it'll take more than emotions to stop her' he frowned at the nurse and she left.

Clark then noticed that according to the machines her heart rate was going up and her brain waves were other than normal.

'You can get through this Chloe, just fight it' He whispered and held her hand. 'Don't die on me now'

* * *

'Where am I going now?' Chloe sniffed as her surroundings changed again and she was back at the forest and it was getting dark. 'Stupid fireflies' She sighed and just sat on the ground, too emotionally drained and she had used up all her tears already.

'Who does he think he is?' She spoke to herself as no one else was around. 'But what if he is right? What if it is all some make-believe happiness?' She looked up at the sky, somewhere out there was a place where a planet should have been, but wasn't.

'Can an alien like Clark really fall in love with a human like me?' She asked herself. 'Lana is understandable, perfect looking ex-cheerleader…had to compare to… but Lana is great…maybe I just don't deserve Clark, or maybe-' She stopped as water hit her eye. Rain, it was starting to rain and by the sounds of it, a storm was brewing.

'Oh fantastic!' She said sarcastically. 'Things just keep getting better'

'You can get through this Chloe, just fight it' Clark's voice whispered in the thunder, almost like it was part of her imagination.

'Clark?' She called out.

'Don't die on me now' His voice whispered again, but then silence.

'Die?' She repeated, totally lost. 'Unless…I'm not really here…or am I going crazy? After all Mr-no-name said… no I can't listen to him…I…but what if he's right? Oh not again!' She nearly screamed as the darkness faded and hospital scenery surrounded her. Smallville Medical Center; and there was Clark and his parents hugging tearfully, Mr Sullivan sitting on a chair with his head buried in his hands.

'What happened?' She wondered aloud and noticed a room they were right next to. She walked over slowly and saw a girl lying in a bed, her heart had gone into over-drive and it had triggered a cardiac arrest…and killed her. Chloe stood next to the bed in shock as the nurses covered her face with a sheet…yes, her face.

'But…how?' Chloe wondered and saw the upset, but small crowd outside being joined by Lana and Lois. Clark got up and started to leave.

'No Clark…don't go' She whispered and that was when she snapped…all her pain, loss and confusion broke out into a scream.

'CLARK!' She screamed and sat up in the hospital bed in alarm, doctors and nurses came running in and Clark was instantly by her side.

'Chloe…you're okay' He smiled and allowed the doctors to get to her, so he backed away to give them the space they need.

'What the?' Chloe was very confused, but Clark was there, and by the sounds of some screaming and yelling down the hall…so was Lois. She lay back and let the doctors do their stuff while she breathed a sigh of relief.

Next thing I will do, she thought to herself, is find the guy who said that stuff and really give him something to worry about.

'Wow, she is completely healed…how on Earth did that happen?' A nurse said in shock.

Chloe realised she still had her powers, grinning even more. Then she began to drift to a dreamless sleep as her body was exhausted.


End file.
